ArticleBMC health services research2021
Information provision and retrieval by registered salespersons from consumers during over-the-counter drug sales - a questionnaire survey.
Article in BMC health services research, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed, 1 citations in OpenAlex.
- Expanding OTC medicine access in non-pharmacy settings for self-medication: a scoping review.Journal of pharmaceutical policy and practice · 2026Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
8 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundIn Japan, non-pharmacists who are accredited as registered salespersons can sell over-the-counter (OTC) drugs, and they play a very important role in supporting proper OTC drug use by consumers. The purpose of this study was to evaluate information provided to and information collected from consumers, and cooperation with pharmacists during OTC drug sales by registered salespersons, and to clarify their related concerns and behaviors.
methodsA cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey of 385 registered salespersons working at 56 drugstores throughout Japan was conducted. Based on the questionnaire survey, the frequency of information provision/collection in various categories was determined for the registered salespersons. The relation between concerns of registered salespersons relating to OTC drug sales and the frequency of information provision/collection was examined. The frequency of consultation of registered salespersons with a pharmacist was calculated for registered salespersons with/without in-store pharmacists. The χ-square test or Fisher's exact test was performed to assess the significance of differences.
resultsTwo hundred and seven registered salespersons (53.7%) responded completely. A greater number of OTC drug purchasers per day was associated with a greater frequency of information provision about "side effects" and information collection about "favorite items" (alcohol, tobacco, health foods, etc.) (p < 0.05). One hundred and thirty-nine (67.2%) participants had concerns about "interactions between OTC drugs and prescription drugs", and these concerns were related to the frequency of information provision/collection (p < 0.05). Regarding the frequency of consultation with a pharmacist, 35 of 46 participants (76.1%) working with pharmacists answered "always" or "usually", whereas only 19 of 161 participants (11.8%) working without full-time pharmacists answered "always" or "usually". More than half of the registered salespersons thought that cooperation with a pharmacist was necessary when they were "asked about concomitant use with prescription drugs" or "told that side effects happened."
conclusionsThe results of this study show that experienced registered salespersons selling OTC drugs are more likely to collect information from consumers and to provide information to consumers. It appears to be important for registered salespersons to cooperate with pharmacists in order to provide and collect appropriate information about concomitant medications.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.